Interview with Salomé Carrera, General Manager of Pili Carrera

Salomé Carrera’s career has evolved in line with the growth and evolution of the firm Pili Carrera since she completed her studies and joined the business founded by her parents, Pilar Rodríguez and Bienvenido Carrera.

Since she started at the firm, Salomé Carrera has worked in different departments, gaining the knowledge and skills necessary for the management and production of the company’s textile business. Today she holds the position of General Manager.

All Pili Carrera’s production is run and distributed from the head offices in Pontevedra. What benefits does this have for the brand in terms of competition?

We have had just one production centre since the company was founded over 50 years ago and this is where we carry out all the manufacturing processes from the initial designs to distributing to stores. Since the beginning, at Pili Carrera we have opted for local production as this allows us to have complete control over all phases of the manufacturing. Our goal is to offer our customers an impeccable garment, and in order to do this we must be able to continuously monitor every process. We also make highly coordinated garments of fabric and knitwear and in order to this we must have both production lines here, at our facilities in Mos (Pontevedra).

You have a chain of single-brand stores and a multi-brand sales network around the world. What led you to opt for this model?

Over the course of the past fifty years, the company has gradually incorporated new product lines such as children’s products, furnishings, cosmetics, etc. This broad offer, together with growing demand from our customers, led us to choose the single-brand chain formula, a space to offer our customers a global concept of our collection. We currently have a network of over 50 stores in 15 countries such as the US and Kuwait. In markets where, due to our store requirements, we cannot set up a Pili Carrera franchise, we have opted for a multi-brand channel, through which we have approximately 600 independent points of sale around the world.

What are the main selection criteria for deciding what new markets to enter?

To set our goals at international level we observe the economic and political situation in the country, its per capita income, growth indices and market analyses, both for possible competitors we may find there and for the adaptation of our product to cultural, social and religious aspects.

How important is the online sales channel for Pili Carrera?

Today this is an essential distribution channel for our collections as it allows us to reach places where we do not have a store and to respond to customers who want our products. We opened it two years ago and sales have gradually increased. It is currently only available in Spain, but our intention is to implement it in Europe.

What sort of a presence does the brand have on social media?

Pili Carrera currently has an official profile on a number of social networks such as Facebook, Youtube and Instagram, all run from our head office in Mod (Pontevedra). In this day and age when new technologies have completely changed our social habits, an online presence is an essential shop window for promoting our brand, interacting with our customers and showing our collections to the public. The use of social media as a business communication tool is the image the the company projects on its online channel and is why we are keenly aware of these profiles, emcompassing the values and image that our brand aims to transmit.

What are your goals for 2017?

For the coming year, our objectives are focused on consolidating our position in the Middle East (Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) though the opening of new stores, the first being in Qatar, but without ruling out possible agreements in other countries. Another of our major goals for 2017 is to continue our growth in the US and Latin America, strengthening our current presence in Mexico, Panama, Guatemala, Peru and the Dominican Republic.

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